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Grouping of Decathlon Disciplines

Author

Listed:
  • Woolf Anne

    (Kingston University)

  • Ansley Les

    (Kingston University)

  • Bidgood Penelope

    (Kingston University)

Abstract

The 10 disciplines in the decathlon can be broadly characterised as running, jumping and throwing. However, these simplistic characteristics may not represent the groupings defined by performances in the decathlon. The identification of groups may reveal a recondite advantage for athletes who excel in particular disciplines. Therefore this study used cluster analysis to determine the groupings inherent within the decathlon disciplines. The data set was derived from the top 173 decathletes between the years 1986 to 2005. Six clustering methods were applied to a Euclidean proximity matrix. The highest number of clusters common to all the methods was accepted as the solution. All six methods produced the same 3-cluster ([100m 400m 110H LJ PV HJ][SP DT JT][1500m]), 4-cluster ([100m 400m 110H LJ PV][SP DT JT][HJ][1500m]) and 5-cluster ([100m 400m 110mH LJ][SP DT JT][PV][HJ][1500m]) solutions. Stability tests confirmed the consistency of all the solutions. The 10 disciplines of the decathlon form into five groupings, which can be adequately explained from a physiological perspective. The clustering suggests that athletes who perform better at the sprint/track disciplines may obtain an advantage in the decathlon.

Suggested Citation

  • Woolf Anne & Ansley Les & Bidgood Penelope, 2007. "Grouping of Decathlon Disciplines," Journal of Quantitative Analysis in Sports, De Gruyter, vol. 3(4), pages 1-15, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:jqsprt:v:3:y:2007:i:4:n:5
    DOI: 10.2202/1559-0410.1057
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    Cited by:

    1. Dziadek Bartosz & Mendyka Wiesław & Przednowek Krzysztof & Iskra Janusz, 2022. "Principal Component Analysis in the Study of the Structure of Decathlon at Different Stages of Sports Career," Polish Journal of Sport and Tourism, Sciendo, vol. 29(4), pages 21-28, December.
    2. Wimmer Valentin & Fenske Nora & Pyrka Patricia & Fahrmeir Ludwig, 2011. "Exploring Competition Performance in Decathlon Using Semi-Parametric Latent Variable Models," Journal of Quantitative Analysis in Sports, De Gruyter, vol. 7(4), pages 1-21, October.
    3. Schomaker Michael & Heumann Christian, 2011. "Model Averaging in Factor Analysis: An Analysis of Olympic Decathlon Data," Journal of Quantitative Analysis in Sports, De Gruyter, vol. 7(1), pages 1-15, January.

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